Elements is pretty good, depending on what you want to do. Take a look at Paintshop Pro for $99.00. You can download a free evaluation copy here:
http://www.jasc.com/
Or, you may want to look at GIMP, which is free:
http://www.gimp.org/~tml/gimp/win32/
or the free 602Pro Office Suite, which includes a pretty nice photo program:
http://www.software602.com/products/pcs/
It really depends on just what you want to do with your photos.
Jim